


Trial and Error

by TinyBat



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-03
Updated: 2012-10-03
Packaged: 2017-11-15 13:05:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/527631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TinyBat/pseuds/TinyBat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Little snapshots of Jefferson and Grace’s life together post curse. Parenting a growing girl is a challenge, training a father is even more so.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Trial and Error

**Author's Note:**

> Because they're precious, that's why!.

School Uniform

“And you’re sure you can’t just wear that skirt?” muttered a very exasperated Jefferson while tearing through the laundry room with his daughter peeking through a stack of towels.

“No, papa I can’t. I’m too tall and there’s a length rule. Besides, the longer ones are most comfortable.” Stated the girl through what was a growing pile of fluffy pink face cloths.

Grace had grown 3 inches in 6 months and as a result her school uniform no longer fit the way it should. Jefferson made hats, not clothes and thus was utterly baffled by such odd rules imposed on inoffensive pieces of fabric. She was a 10 year old girl so it wouldn’t be a matter of propriety just a matter of the class picture looking a bit strange to anyone who examined it with a magnifying glass. It was something he’d never understand and he was now well resigned to that fact.

Waist Coats

Flamboyant, quirky, eccentric, strange, hipster, dated and odd were all ways Ruby and Emma had classified Jefferson’s closet. He of course would have called it stylish and privately Emma thought it was rather sexy but to the general public, patterned shirts and waist coats weren’t the norm. Grace was used to her father’s utterly bizarre taste in clothing so it wasn’t of much bother to her until he tried finding appropriate clothes for a dinner date. When Ruby babysat they watched a lot of shows on style and for whatever reason Ruby had a fondness for back issues of Esquire.

“Yes to the pants, no to the paisley. Yes to the shoes, no to the waist coat. Maybe try a tie instead. Really, you could stand to be a little bit more modern in your wardrobe.” murmured an almost bored Grace while Jefferson tossed articles of clothing out of his closet in a frenzied attempt at finding something suitable for a quiet dinner.

She was aware that her papa was handsome in whatever odd way Ruby mentioned and that Sheriff Swan had taken quite a liking to him after much groveling and a well-aimed right cross. This suited Grace just fine but she really did wish that they’d hurry up and get to the part of their relationship where she’d take him shopping for something sensible.

Music

It was unavoidable, at 11 years old Grace had discovered the boy band. While not the most horrifying thing ever to happen in the Carroll household it was up there with the most taxing. Floppy haired, tight pants wearing, lascivious grin possessing, excessively charming, harmonious little hellions had insinuated themselves into his darling girls iPod and onto her bedroom walls. They were slowly killing the speakers and Jefferson as well by inches.

During the 28 years he was stuck in his home Jefferson had amassed quite a respectable music collection and even taught himself a few instruments so he didn’t see why he was being punished this way. Not that he didn’t love hearing his daughter sing but it was hardly what he’d call music by any stretch of the imagination and he did not like it. Ruby found it endlessly funny and supported Grace in her newest obsession solely to upset him. Ruby was the sister he wished he had growing up but like with younger siblings, blood or otherwise he wanted to strangle her for this. If he had tried she would have torn out his throat with her teeth and thought nothing of it.

Boys had no place in his daughter’s life yet and he’d see that they didn’t until she was 30. Grace was stubborn though and reaching the point in her young life where upsetting her father was starting to become amusing so the music and the screaming continued.

 

Movies

There was absolutely no earthly reason why Grace shouldn’t see this movie. It’s not like there weren’t flying body parts in Storybrooke. Everybody else was and if Papa wouldn’t take her, Ruby certainly would. It wasn’t fair, the male lead was so cute and fun to watch and all the other girls would laugh at her if she didn’t go. Blood and skin were hardly new to Grace so really her father was just being absurd.

“Papa, please! Jake is going and Emma is chaperoning so Henry will be there too so I’ll be fine! Please…” Grace’s wheedling was cut off by a drawn out sigh from the slumped over figure in the overstuffed armchair. That was Jefferson’s “you’ve won, I give up” sigh that was becoming all the more frequent as Grace aged; a quick kiss on the cheek and a high pitched squeal later Grace sped up the stairs and immediately got on the phone. She almost felt guilty but hormones and over-excitement quickly cancelled it out.

Unmentionables

Being a parent was a greater joy than Jefferson Carroll was sure he deserved but the mention of his daughter needing certain new articles of clothing sent a fear through him he knew was years in the making. Grace was now a stunning 14 year old girl; smart, funny, insightful and far beyond her age in attitude than any curse rightfully allowed for. He had done bad things; he knew that and sorely regretted them so now this was his punishment. His daughter needed properly fitted bras and he had absolutely no idea where to begin helping her out.

Grace would have absolutely died of embarrassment if he went with her so she called Emma, his now fiancée for help and came back with all the necessary items. This he was thankful for as he wasn’t sure he would ever recover. Of course this also meant that he’d have Henry watch her at every opportunity so if other boys noticed they would behave themselves. Henry was an excellent brother for Grace even if she was more physically capable; he always kept an eye out for her. He had come home from school with a bruise that would have made a professional boxer wince; he had defended Grace’s honor up until she nearly knocked the mouthy jerk unconscious and she walked Henry to the nurse’s office.

Being pretty of course the boys would keep saying things and eventually she’d need to stop doling out physical punishment even if her step mother to be and her father felt a perverse sense of pride in it.


End file.
